Mask Sterilization Chemicals

slacker1 · Post by **slacker1** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 6:18 am

I am in Canada, and as noted before, bought a mask from the USA that I suspect is used. Rather than going through the hassle of returning it and trying to get a refund from an unco-operative seller, I checked out the Resmed site for sterilizing techniques. They suggest using Anioxyde (peracetic acid), or CIDEX (big words). A pharmacist I spoke with said that CIDEX is available, but not cost effectively. He hadn't heard of Anioxyde. I understand that peracetic acid is used in the brewing and beverage industries, but I don't seem to be able to track down a source for a small quantity. Does anyone have an idea where I could go to get some?

PS - Like many here I would rather not deal with the vulturelike DME's who for just a few hundred dollars more can provide you with two dollars worth of parts.

LinkC · Post by **LinkC** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 7:08 am

Dish soap and tap water. (It works for the forks at your favorite restaurant!)

Toss the headgear in with the laundry.

bearded_two · Post by **bearded_two** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 7:10 am

You might want to check out janitorial supply stores, home brewing stores, and industrial supply stores.

VigorOx is a brand name of it.

http://www.fmcchemicals.com/FMCIndustri ... fault.aspx

Choose VigorOx and enter your information.

BeanMeScot · Post by **BeanMeScot** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 7:33 am

I wouldn't want a bunch of strong chemicals on something that is going to touch my skin and carry air to my lungs. I would wash it with dish soap and soak it in white vinegar with water.

Rustyolddude · Post by **Rustyolddude** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 7:48 am

If you're truly worried about prions as mentioned in a previous post, you're going to have a tough time with the sterlization technique http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prion

Generally a simple bleach solution is more than enough to sterilize anything including drinking water. UV light for 1 hour, ozonation. Generally the combination of the above three will clean up the worst of contaminated water.

BleepingBeauty · Post by **BleepingBeauty** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 8:32 am

How about Control III?

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/Contro ... eaner.html

Uncle_Bob · Post by **Uncle_Bob** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 10:32 am

BleepingBeauty wrote:How about Control III?

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/Contro ... eaner.html

I use that but it leaves such a nasty sterile smell on the equipment that. I have to use the pur-sleep smelly stuff after cleaning.

tattooyu · Post by **tattooyu** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 10:41 am

I was just thinking of getting some Control III, but I'm not so sure I want to now. Maybe I'll just stick with my soap and water, and an occasional soak in 10:1 diluted vinegar solution for good measure.

LinkC · Post by **LinkC** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 10:45 am

Dawn dish soap comes in unscented...

Or, if you really feel the compulsion to douse your mask with chemicals, they make citrus CPAP wipes with an odor that's not completely obnoxious.

jdm2857 · Post by **jdm2857** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 10:59 am

According to Wikipedia, a 1:10 bleach:water will kill most organisms. At 1:2.5, it will take care of Tuberculosis and prions, too. You must soak the mask for at least 20 minutes.

I would not do this routinely, as it may degrade the mask over time. But to sterilize a possibly used mask it should be fine.

Here's the full wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sterilizat ... biology%29

birdshell · Post by **birdshell** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 11:21 am

Two different sources have told me that they use chlorine bleach. One was the RT at my first DME after I turned in my original Swift, which she said was going to be bleached and sent to the lab where I had had my PSG and titration studies. The other was a sleep tech who was discussing a used mask being disinfected.

Neither of these is quite a peer-reviewed journal article on a well-researched empirical study of cleaning methods, but the information is what it is.

Personally, I have used masks gotten from another cpap.com member at least 3 times. Although they have come previously cleaned, I have used the fragrance-free Method dish detergent and a 1:4 vinegar to water soak for at least a half hour. I am pretty fussy about such issues. I haven't suffered any ill effects thus far.

Karen,
Who tries to fight the family's learned OCD

Babette · Post by **Babette** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 11:28 am

tattooyu wrote:I was just thinking of getting some Control III, but I'm not so sure I want to now. Maybe I'll just stick with my soap and water, and an occasional soak in 10:1 diluted vinegar solution for good measure.

I don't notice any smell with Control III. When I do a Control III, I usually follow it with a 5-10 minute boiling water bath.

YMMV,
B.

pitrow · Post by **pitrow** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 11:31 am

back when I used to homebrew beer I always used an iodine based sanitizer to sanitize my equipment. Please be aware that there is a difference between sanitizing and cleaning. Cleaning is to wash away any large chunks of material and get the surface relatively clean for the sanitizer. The sanitizing kills any left over organisms that weren't scrubbed away during cleaning. There is a reason restaurants are required to have three sinks (wash-rinse-sanitize)

anyway, you should check out homebrew places for sanitizing agents. I was always able to get small bottles, like 3.5 ounces, that suited my needs fine.

One of the web sites I used to order stuff from is More Beer...
http://morebeer.com/search/102376/beerw ... _Chemicals

you might want to check out the StarSan CL26B

Babette · Post by **Babette** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 11:33 am

birdshell wrote:Karen,
Who tries to fight the family's learned OCD

Karen, by "family" you mean US, right?

You're absolutely correct - this forum is crack for the OCD.

I have to keep fighting the urge to obsess.

LOL,
B.

jerseygirl · Post by **jerseygirl** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 1:03 pm

The cleaning instructions you mentioned were for lab/ hospital use.

For patient sanitizing DO NOT use Bleach on the mask, it does not like the silicone.

Instead clean with mild soap and water, then soak in mixture of White Vinegar and water 1/4 ration is ok. Vinegar is a natural sanitizer and deorderizer.
Be sure to rinse throughly or you will notice a vinegary sent. I wash my headgear, hose and covers the same way.

Clean Green!

Machine	Mask	Humidifier

Additional Comments: 11-14 cmH2O

Machine	Mask	Humidifier

Additional Comments: 11-14 cmH2O

Mask Sterilization Chemicals

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